Kathleen Walker’s June 13 letter supporting Assembly Bill 84 ignores what this bill really is: a targeted attack on school choice, driven by powerful teachers’ unions and rubber-stamped by lawmakers who benefit from their donations.
AB 84, introduced by Assemblymembers Robert Garcia and Al Muratsuchi, imposes stricter credentialing, vendor caps and audits — regulations that hit charter schools far harder than traditional public schools. Walker, a public school employee in the Antelope Valley Union High School District, has a vested interest in seeing charter schools restricted. AB 84 would reduce competition from charters, benefiting the very system she works for. Yet she presents herself as a neutral voice, praising Assemblywoman Pilar Schiavo for “listening to constituents,” while ignoring thousands of charter parents and students who protested the bill in May (The Signal, “Parents, Students Protest.”).
This bill wasn’t born of community demand — it was bought by union dollars. The California Teachers Association and affiliated unions gave over $12 million in 2024, with nearly $300,000 going to Garcia, Muratsuchi and Schiavo (FollowTheMoney.org, 2024). That money didn’t just influence policy — it wrote it.
At the same time, these unions and their political allies have attacked parent-led groups like Moms for Liberty, calling them “a threat to public education” and “extremist” for simply supporting charter schools and parental rights (The Signal, April 2025). When unions lobby to limit choice, it’s called “reform.” When parents push back, they’re labeled dangerous.
The double standard is undeniable. Public schools receive nearly $24,000 per student, while charters manage with roughly $16,500 and no facilities funding (EdSource, 2023). Yes, fraud exists — like the A3 scandal — but public districts also face frequent financial misuse. Where’s the equal scrutiny?
AB 84 isn’t about fairness or accountability. It’s about control. It protects a monopoly and punishes families for wanting alternatives. If lawmakers truly cared about equity, they’d apply these standards to all schools — not just the ones unions want to weaken.
Nancy Fairbanks